PARENTS ARRESTED AFTER MAKING CHILD EAT IRON WEIGHTS

September 8 2009

Portland, OR – Iron has long been recognized as one of the most important components to sustaining life. Virtually all life forms, plant and animal, require different levels of iron for basic survival and because of that, and our ever changing diet, many
food manufacturers now add the element. Many foods such as meat , lentils, and beans have long been considered excellent sources of the element but because of poor eating habits many still go without the necessary levels in their body. That deficiency is becoming more of a problem as dietary habits continue to deteriorate.

That increased need for iron and other essential elements lacking in modern diets has led to many people taking sustenance into their own hands. Such is the cause of the Walker family from Clackamas County, a suburb of Portland, who have been charged with child endangerment after force feeding their 2-year old son small weights. Currently on bail, the Walkers are facing trial early next week. Their son is now in the care of his grandparents and is believed to be doing well after an emergency procedure to remove the weights.

“We can confirm that that a Portland area couple is was taken in and are no free on bail. The charges placed are in the realm of child endangerment but I cannot e more specific than that. The child involved is believed to be the son of the couple and is now in the care of his grandparents. We don’t expect him to suffer any ill effects from his experience over the last few days,” said a police spokesperson. “We would like to take this opportunity to warn all parents and caretakers that feeding children anything but food is very dangerous and will not be tolerated by this or nay police force. Endangering your child in this manner is not only unethical it is a crime and will be punished as harshly as the law allows. We will not accept our children being abused in such ways.”

Adding to the couple’s woes, the weights fed to the child are believed to be only 80 per cent iron with a variety of metals making up the remaining percentage. Currently large amounts of metal are not broken down by the human digestive system.

“Generally speaking when it comes to supplements the best way to ingest them is through some type of vitamin. Either a multi-vitamin or a specific pill is more than sufficient to provide a person with the recommended daily dosage of things like iron. Because of the declining quality of eating habits it’s usually best to integrate vitamins into daily use,” said Scrape TV Health analyst Rebecca Phelps. “Pure iron in particular does not break down very readily and stomach acids simply aren’t powerful enough to break those masses down in the short time they are in the stomach. Most often such things will be passed naturally but in a child the risk of consuming too many and potentially clogging the intestines is a real concern and is most definitely not recommended.”

It’s not clear yet where the iron weights were purchased or whether or not the retailer could be held liable in the case. It’s believed the idea was first formulated as a result of reading the side of a Corn Flakes box.

“Eating anything that isn’t actually food is dangerous for people of any age and that danger is only exacerbated in young children. It also gives the child the impression that things other than food are perfectly acceptable to eat and that will inevitably lead to other issues,” continued Phelps. “There are plenty of great ways to add iron into your diet which would avoid you having to eat raw metal. Most of those ways are also a whole lot more appetizing as well as raw metal is typically very difficult to prepare without retaining that tangy taste.”

Doctors also recommend against consuming other metals and chemicals such as zinc and chromium in the raw form.

Mike Michaels, American Correspondent

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